The well being of the mind and body is the greatest asset for any individual, be it young or old and Park Hospitals with the objective of ‘safeguarding your health’ strives to accomplish just that. With private health care facilities gaining momentum in the current economy, Roland Munasinghe, Chairman of Park Hospitals reveals the Hospitals’ journey and their approach in providing quality health care facilities where social profit is given more emphasis than financial gain.
By Krishani Peiris
Photography Damith Wickramasinghe
Initially named as St Lukes Nursing Home and Neptune Hospital, with the change of ownership in 2003, the Hospital was renamed as Park Hospitals and was given a new outlook through extensive renovation and refurbishment schemes. Projected as a modern-family hospital, Park Hospital accommodates ample parking and continually looks into the changing requirements of the patients to better upgrade their facilities to cater to the evolving needs.
“The facilities that were available when we took over was not
up to standard,” said Munasinghe revealing the condition of the hospital, which has been functioning since 1976. “Perhaps that
was why most doctors refused
to practice here. Therefore,
we changed the whole setup in terms of infrastructure, refurbishment and invited well reputed doctors from a cross section of
medical disciplines. One of the most important steps that we took is to open a separate unit for paediatric patients with the assistance of three specialists.”
The services available at the Hospital include a diverse range such as an emergency treatment unit,
Park family health practice (OPD), diagnostic centre, specialist channelled consultations comprising over 100 specialists, pharmacy, dental clinic, psychiatric care, childcare, operation unit, operative and long term care, speech therapy, diet consultations, eye clinic, stress management clinic, physiotherapy and rehabilitation and many more. “We do not have intensive care facilities,” explained Munasinghe. “Therefore,
if such care is needed and if there is an emergency, we first stabilise the patient and then direct or take them to the appropriate place.”
Further if patients require a consultation over the phone, he or she can contact the in house medical officer/doctor, available 24 hours and seven days a week, who will, depending on the symptoms described, will either prescribe the necessary medicine over the phone or direct the caller to consult a suitable doctor. Another strong point of Park Hospitals is its vaccination clinic and Munasinghe affirms that “one could name the hospital as one of the leaders in private vaccination facilities.” Adding to the list of services that have been improved recently is the surgery ward, which had been refurbished and relaunched to better serve the minor surgical needs of patients.
The ease of access, being located at Park Road, Colombo 5, has enabled the Hospital to slowly but steadily garner the attention of people, especially through the quality service that they have been able to provide through the years. “It’s a very complicated undertaking,”
Chairman Munasinghe stressed when relaying his thoughts on the private health care industry of
Sri Lanka. “However, we have been able to secure a share of the market.
I am a lawyer by profession and is part of the Lanka Medical Protection Guarantee as the General Secretary.
I got involved in the field of medicine as I wanted to provide my son,
Dr Sanjayadeve Munasinghe, his own hospital to manage so that we can do a great service to the country.”
“We Are Not Operating With Competition Or A Big Turnover In Mind. Our Emphasis Is On Providing A Quality Service Even If It Is For A Limited Number Of Patients. We Are Already Providing A Good Service…”
The staff at Park Hospitals is at the core of its success and the extensive training provided in house goes a long way in cultivating good patient care and public relations between the care provider and the patient. Reliability, cost-effectiveness and quick and expert care being some of the most important factors encouraged by the management, the Hospital endeavours to provide all necessary services and care to patients without unnecessary delays and complications involved, as such enhancing the customer confidence. Further, security of employment is given prominence while the Hospital is paying more attention on training staff to provide para medical facilities so that a quality and comprehensive service could be dispensed.
“We are not operating with competition or a big turnover in mind. Our emphasis is on providing a quality service even if it is for a limited number of patients. We are already providing a good service. Therefore, I believe that the number of patients we have is more than sufficient and we are happy with the current situation,” asserted Munasinghe. However, he mentioned that the Hospital is looking to expand to include more facilities, new equipment and a dengue control unit-taking into consideration the timeliness of addressing this prevalent issue while looking at the possibility of setting up branches in other parts of the country as well. “We are also looking to tie up with other hospitals, especially with those abroad. To this extent recently we visited a hospital in Bangalore and engaged in discussions to obtain their services in Sri Lanka in case circumstances arise where we require the assistance of international medical professionals,” he further added.
“A hospital is not only about the treatment of patients as there are various other aspects that need to be looked into. We have many facilities and we even provide services to their door steps whenever possible. People really have to come to the hospital and see, especially the emphasis we put on maintenance and cleanliness. For us this is not simply a business venture. We look at the social profit as well,” concluded Munasinghe.
